Fast Food Logos with a Side of Honesty

After going through a successful weight-loss experience, Riyadh-based designer Adelbanfeel decided to add a few extra pixels to some of the most well known fast food logos in the world, all in order to help him avoid eating in those places again.

The series was more than appropriately entitled “That’s How I See It”, and the logos of McDonald’s, Burger King, Pizza Hut, amongst others where fattened, metaphorically giving them a taste of their own medicine. The result is a brilliant showcase of wit and artistic talent, but enough said, let’s take a good look at these heavy contenders of design.

After looking at these overweight logos, one can only assume Adelbanfeel will not be eating on these places anytime soon, and I guess he wanted to inspire others who are in need of shedding some extra pounds too. Honestly, I know I do, and looking at these logos makes the job of avoiding those deliciously calorific foods a lot easier. Thanks for that!

If nothing else, these logos are going to make you think about your own eating habits, and perhaps, you’ll even consider a change, but I guess there’s also another point which is extremely relevant here: should brands be more honest when selling their image?

Are brands creating fashionable and enticing images to help increase sales, when sometimes, we suspect these brands are causing more harm than good? An excellent example of that comes from a few decades ago: do you remember a famous cowboy that used to sell cigarettes? Well, those powerful images and adventure theme song inspired thousands to start smoking, but now we know how bad that was for our health and smoking is in decline.

So I wonder, are we currently doing the same with fast food? Should we take a serious stand against these brands? I wouldn’t dare say I know the answer, but perhaps we should be taking this topic quite seriously, the quality of our future may depend upon that.

Finally, let me just state the obvious: this is a parody, it was created with the intent of drawing attention to the contradictory nature between brands and their products. I’m confident that — with moderation — fast food will not make you fat, but please, don’t take my word for it.

Should brands be more honest in their self-portrayal? What other brands could do with a dose of honesty? Let us know in the comments.

Ray Vellest is a brand identity specialist based in London and working with organizations and individuals from all over the world. Ray’s approach to identity design position his clients as leaders of their industries while creating a valuable long-term asset for their businesses. Follow @rayvellest on Twitter to keep up with his latest updates. More articles by Ray Vellest